Christ's College Chapel Choir
Encyclopedia
Christ's College Chapel Choir is a mixed-voice ensemble based at Christ's College
, Cambridge
, England
. Its raison d'etre is, as it has always been, to sing services in the College Chapel. Choral Evensong is sung on Thursday and Sunday Evenings during Full Term, and Choral Eucharist services take place on a less frequent basis. More generally, the Choir makes an important contribution to the life of the College, singing at feasts, weddings, memorial services and other occasions. Further to this, the group also pursues an exciting range of activities outside College, performing concerts in Cambridge and around the UK, recording CDs, and broadcasting.
. During his third year he assisted the Organ Scholar at Kings by playing regularly at services. After graduating in 1978 he pursued research in Cambridge, while still playing the organ and in 1981 he won the prestigious St Alban's International Organ Competition. In the following year he was a major prizewinner at the Dublin International Organ Competition. Subsequently David became a lecturer in the music department of Glasgow University
and then Director of Music at Christ's College Cambridge, where he has conducted the choir for the last twenty-two years. More recently, from 2002-4 he conducted the Welsh National Youth Choir. In addition to conducting he records, broadcasts and performs regularly in London's South Bank concert halls and in many other venues nationwide, on harpsichord
, organ and early piano. David joined the staff of the Music Department of the Open University
in 1989, where he is currently Professor of Music and Dean of the Faculty of Arts. He pursues research into the performance practice of the early piano, and in particular into the career of Muzio Clementi
, on which subjects he has written four books and other scholarly material.
to Washington D.C. by way of Boston Massachusetts, Newport, Rhode Island
, Nantucket, Massachusetts
, New York, New York and many other prominent towns en route over the course of three weeks.. The choir usually undertakes a smaller localised tour of a region of Great Britain
during the Easter vacation, in order to raise funds for a trip abroad.
's Muse magazine praised the Choir's "very polished performance" and its "rich and even mixture of parts".
(an alumnus of the college) who described 'Basse Currie' as when 'the singing-men of the quire do joine to delight in curried mutton and also in mulberrie chutnie; a joyful repast'. This text is very highly disputed. It has been suggested, although there is no evidence for this, that Milton's mysterious rustication from Cambridge may have been due to irreligious acts (hardly in keeping with his training for religious ministry) carried out at said 'Basse Currie'.
Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.With a reputation for high academic standards, Christ's College averaged top place in the Tompkins Table from 1980-2000 . In 2011, Christ's was placed sixth.-College history:...
, Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Its raison d'etre is, as it has always been, to sing services in the College Chapel. Choral Evensong is sung on Thursday and Sunday Evenings during Full Term, and Choral Eucharist services take place on a less frequent basis. More generally, the Choir makes an important contribution to the life of the College, singing at feasts, weddings, memorial services and other occasions. Further to this, the group also pursues an exciting range of activities outside College, performing concerts in Cambridge and around the UK, recording CDs, and broadcasting.
Director of music
The choir is led by David Rowland, who was Organ Scholar at Corpus Christi CollegeCorpus Christi College, Cambridge
Corpus Christi College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It is notable as the only college founded by Cambridge townspeople: it was established in 1352 by the Guilds of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary...
. During his third year he assisted the Organ Scholar at Kings by playing regularly at services. After graduating in 1978 he pursued research in Cambridge, while still playing the organ and in 1981 he won the prestigious St Alban's International Organ Competition. In the following year he was a major prizewinner at the Dublin International Organ Competition. Subsequently David became a lecturer in the music department of Glasgow University
University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
and then Director of Music at Christ's College Cambridge, where he has conducted the choir for the last twenty-two years. More recently, from 2002-4 he conducted the Welsh National Youth Choir. In addition to conducting he records, broadcasts and performs regularly in London's South Bank concert halls and in many other venues nationwide, on harpsichord
Harpsichord
A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It produces sound by plucking a string when a key is pressed.In the narrow sense, "harpsichord" designates only the large wing-shaped instruments in which the strings are perpendicular to the keyboard...
, organ and early piano. David joined the staff of the Music Department of the Open University
Open University
The Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...
in 1989, where he is currently Professor of Music and Dean of the Faculty of Arts. He pursues research into the performance practice of the early piano, and in particular into the career of Muzio Clementi
Muzio Clementi
Muzio Clementi was a celebrated composer, pianist, pedagogue, conductor, music publisher, editor, and piano manufacturer. Born in Italy, he spent most of his life in England. He is best known for his piano sonatas, and his collection of piano studies, Gradus ad Parnassum...
, on which subjects he has written four books and other scholarly material.
Tours
The choir undertakes a major international tour each Summer. The group has visited the USA, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Canada, Australia and many European countries over the last few years. Most recently the choir toured the United States of America for a second time, entertaining audiences from Burlington, VermontBurlington, Vermont
Burlington is the largest city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the shire town of Chittenden County. Burlington lies south of the U.S.-Canadian border and some south of Montreal....
to Washington D.C. by way of Boston Massachusetts, Newport, Rhode Island
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
, Nantucket, Massachusetts
Nantucket, Massachusetts
Nantucket is an island south of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, in the United States. Together with the small islands of Tuckernuck and Muskeget, it constitutes the town of Nantucket, Massachusetts, and the coterminous Nantucket County, which are consolidated. Part of the town is designated the Nantucket...
, New York, New York and many other prominent towns en route over the course of three weeks.. The choir usually undertakes a smaller localised tour of a region of Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
during the Easter vacation, in order to raise funds for a trip abroad.
Reviews
The Choir has been reviewed by critics internationally. The Philadelphia Inquirer praised their "accomplished and satisfying" performance, enjoying their "particularly robust sonority", in a "living artistic experience". The Toronto Star described its musicianship as "dazzling". The Hong Kong Times wrote of the "rich sounds and emotions" offered by a choir which "exploits its potential to the fullest", and CanberraCanberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
's Muse magazine praised the Choir's "very polished performance" and its "rich and even mixture of parts".
Recordings
- Requiem - A thanksgiving for life, Choral works by Sir Philip Ledger (2010) A collection of anthems and carols by the British composer Philip LedgerPhilip LedgerSir Philip Ledger CBE is a British classical musician and academic. He is best-known for his tenure as director of the Choir of King's College, Cambridge between 1973 and 1982 and as director of Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama from 1982 until his retirement in 2001...
alongside his Requiem - A thanksgiving for life - Scarlatti (2009) Sacred music by father and son AlessandroAlessandro ScarlattiAlessandro Scarlatti was an Italian Baroque composer especially famous for his operas and chamber cantatas. He is considered the founder of the Neapolitan school of opera. He was the father of two other composers, Domenico Scarlatti and Pietro Filippo Scarlatti.-Life:Scarlatti was born in...
and Domenico ScarlattiDomenico ScarlattiGiuseppe Domenico Scarlatti was an Italian composer who spent much of his life in the service of the Portuguese and Spanish royal families. He is classified as a Baroque composer chronologically, although his music was influential in the development of the Classical style... - Of a Rose (2007) Carol settings by BrittenBenjamin BrittenEdward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten, OM CH was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He showed talent from an early age, and first came to public attention with the a cappella choral work A Boy Was Born in 1934. With the premiere of his opera Peter Grimes in 1945, he leapt to...
and LeightonKenneth LeightonKenneth Leighton was a British composer and pianist. His compositions include much Anglican church music, and many pieces for choir and for piano as well as concertos, symphonies, much chamber music and an opera. He wrote a well-known setting of the Coventry Carol... - StanfordCharles Villiers StanfordSir Charles Villiers Stanford was an Irish composer who was particularly notable for his choral music. He was professor at the Royal College of Music and University of Cambridge.- Life :...
Magnificat for Double Chorus, ParryHubert ParrySir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry, 1st Baronet was an English composer, teacher and historian of music.Parry's first major works appeared in 1880. As a composer he is best known for the choral song "Jerusalem", the coronation anthem "I was glad" and the hymn tune "Repton", which sets the words...
Songs of Farewell (2004) - HowellsHerbert HowellsHerbert Norman Howells CH was an English composer, organist, and teacher, most famous for his large output of Anglican church music.-Life:...
Requiem, Britten Rejoice in the Lamb (2002) - Music of the Tudors (2001) Including Tallis'Thomas TallisThomas Tallis was an English composer. Tallis flourished as a church musician in 16th century Tudor England. He occupies a primary place in anthologies of English church music, and is considered among the best of England's early composers. He is honoured for his original voice in English...
Lamentations of Jeremaiah - Sacred music by GibbonsOrlando GibbonsOrlando Gibbons was an English composer, virginalist and organist of the late Tudor and early Jacobean periods...
and PurcellHenry PurcellHenry Purcell – 21 November 1695), was an English organist and Baroque composer of secular and sacred music. Although Purcell incorporated Italian and French stylistic elements into his compositions, his legacy was a uniquely English form of Baroque music...
(2000) - Romantic church music from Europe (1999) including music of BrahmsJohannes BrahmsJohannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist, and one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period. Born in Hamburg, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria, where he was a leader of the musical scene...
and FauréGabriel FauréGabriel Urbain Fauré was a French composer, organist, pianist and teacher. He was one of the foremost French composers of his generation, and his musical style influenced many 20th century composers... - KodalyZoltán KodályZoltán Kodály was a Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist, pedagogue, linguist, and philosopher. He is best known internationally as the creator of the Kodály Method.-Life:Born in Kecskemét, Kodály learned to play the violin as a child....
Missa Brevis, Motets by LisztFranz LisztFranz Liszt ; ), was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher.Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age...
and BrucknerAnton BrucknerAnton Bruckner was an Austrian composer known for his symphonies, masses, and motets. The first are considered emblematic of the final stage of Austro-German Romanticism because of their rich harmonic language, complex polyphony, and considerable length...
(1998) - Thou knowest, Lord, the secrets of our hearts (1997) Funeral Music and Laments from 16th and 17th century EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Traditions
The choir is an institution with several interesting traditions. Although the choir has existed for more than 500 years many of these have emerged in the last 25 years. There are two exceptions to this, the first being the use of red cassocks. This is an honour only open to choirs of royal foundation. The second is the Bass Curry, first recorded by John MiltonJohn Milton
John Milton was an English poet, polemicist, a scholarly man of letters, and a civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell...
(an alumnus of the college) who described 'Basse Currie' as when 'the singing-men of the quire do joine to delight in curried mutton and also in mulberrie chutnie; a joyful repast'. This text is very highly disputed. It has been suggested, although there is no evidence for this, that Milton's mysterious rustication from Cambridge may have been due to irreligious acts (hardly in keeping with his training for religious ministry) carried out at said 'Basse Currie'.